Boston Child Brain Injury Blog

“Faces of Brain Injury” is a must-see exhibit appearing in Boston this week, March 7 through March 11, at the Massachusetts State House. The exhibit focuses on 10 brain injury survivors of all ages in order to raise awareness of how this type of injury can happen to anyone at anytime and how successful treatment can be.

March is also Brain Injury Awareness Month and the exhibit helps the general public see a variety of individuals who recovered from severe brain injuries. The injuries of the featured survivors resulted from different circumstances, ranging from brain lesions to drunk driving accidents to violent encounters.

The Brain Injury Association of Massachusetts (BIA-MA) encourages Massachusetts residents to view the exhibit to understand the impact that brain injuries can have. BIA-MA is a non-profit organization that helps brain injury survivors and their families. The organization also hosts educational programs for the public on raising awareness for these significant injuries.

When You Need to Talk to a Boston Brain Injury Lawyer
If your child has been seriously hurt by another, you shouldn’t have to pay for ongoing medical care and treatment. A serious injury may require lifelong care and financial support. Accepting a settlement offer without the guidance of a skilled Boston brain injury attorney can leave you and your child ill prepared for the road ahead. Your child deserves a legal team who is experienced in handling child injury cases in Massachusetts and one who can ensure that he or she will receive fair compensation for his or her injury.

Before you sign any insurance claim forms, give a recorded statement to the insurance adjuster, or agree to a settlement offer, schedule your FREE case evaluation today by calling 800-930-8145. You can also learn more about how to best handle your child’s injury by requesting a FREE copy of our Massachusetts child injury book.

Epileptic seizures are often a sign of serious brain injuries.

An epileptic seizure, or a fit, is a dramatic outward effect often displayed in a range from a brief loss of consciousness (mild) to a wild thrashing movement (tonic-clonic seizure).

Other signs include a loss of control of the body, where a person will simply “slump” to the ground.

Recurrent, unprovoked seizures are a sign of epilepsy, but seizures can occur in other people as well.

In some cases seizures are just a sign of old age (about 4% of people will experience seizures by the age of 80), but in child brain injuries, seizures can result from a childbirth brain injury or an acquired traumatic brain injury.

For example, during the neonatal period and early infancy, epilepsy in children may be caused by:

• Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy,
• Central nervous system (CNS) infections,
• Birth trauma,
• Congenital abnormalities in the central nervous system, and
• Metabolic disorders.

Later on, in early childhood, febrile seizures (convulsions with a sudden spike in body temperature) may occur, usually caused by CNS infections or head trauma.

As the child grows, during adolescence and adulthood, the causes for epileptic seizures are more likely to be secondary to lesions in the CNS.

When to Seek Legal Help
If your child has suffered a severe brain injury during a traumatic birth or in accident caused by someone’s negligence, talk to a child brain injury attorney to find out how to proceed with your child brain injury case.

Call 1-800-410-2769 for a Free Legal Consultation.

Our team of experienced personal injury lawyers have a 30-year record of obtaining seven figure wins for clients in child injury cases, motor vehicle accidents, medical malpractice and other personal injury cases.

A number of children become victims of brain injuries every year. Some of these injuries are mild while other cases could have long-term complications.

Head & Brain Injury Causes
There are various different ways a child can incur a head injury. One of the most common causes of minor head injuries are caused by falls. Other causes of head trauma or child brain injury can include car accidents, pedestrian and bicycle accidents, sport-related injuries and child abuse. Children who suffer from head injuries in high-speed vehicle related accidents, fall from high elevations, are hit by high-speed objects (baseball bat, golf club), or suffer from vigorous abuse are at higher risk of brain injury.

Brain Injury Symptoms
Head injury symptoms can vary depending on the severity as well as other determining factors. If you believe your child has suffered from a head injury it may be necessary to consult with your doctor. Some of the more common symptoms include:

• Scalp swelling
• Loss of consciousness
• Headache
• Vomiting
• Seizures
• Concussion

Brain Injury Prevention
To prevent your child from severe injuries there are a number of preventative measures you should follow. Some of the steps you can take to avoid brain injury include:

• Install car seats correctly
• Provide proper bicycle helmets
• Encourage spot safety by providing the proper safety gear for your child’s activities
• Teach your children to safely cross the street. Young children should never cross the street alone.

After a personal injury accident in California, you need a skilled lawyer who can help you receive fair compensation for your injuries. If you have been injured in a California accident, contact the personal injury lawyers at BISNAR | CHASE to schedule your free consultation today.

Sources: http://www.uptodate.com/patients/content/topic.do?topicKey=~vEAPHNqmCOJqF1t

If your child experiences a head injury in an accident or a fall, he or she may be at risk for an epidural hematoma.

Epidural hematomas can happen when the head suffers some type of trauma and blood builds up between the skull and the dura mater, which is basically a system of membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord.

With this buildup of blood, pressure on the brain will occur because the blood does not have anywhere else to go.  Swelling can also result with epidural hematomas, which are found in 1-3 percent of all head injuries and of those, approximately 15-20 percent of patients will succumb to the traumatic injury.

These types of epidural bleeds happen immediately following the injury and the blood gathers rapidly.  It can take up to eight hours for the bleeding to reach its limit, ranging from 25 to 75 cubic centimeters of blood.  The more blood that results from the head injury, the more severe the injuries have potential to be.  When the bleeding reaches its maximum level, the dura will cave in from the pressure and result in a severe headache.  Loss of consciousness and potentially damaging pressure on the brain stem may occur.

Head Injuries Linked to Bicycle Accidents and Falls
Nearly 50 percent of all head injuries that occur in sports result from bicycling, skateboarding or skating accidents.

Falls are now the leading cause of traumatic brain injury (TBI) among children up to age 14, with approximately 400,000 children hospitalized and requiring treatment for TBIs each year.

The importance of your child wearing a bicycle helmet cannot be stressed enough, as 285,600 kids up to age 14 are treated annually in the U.S. for injuries related to biking.  Just about half of those injured experienced a TBI.

Please take the necessary time to ensure your child has a helmet that fits properly when out riding a bike in order to help prevent a brain injury.

When You Need to Talk to a Boston Child Brain Injury Attorney
When your child has sustained a life-altering severe brain injury, you shouldn’t have to pay for ongoing medical care and treatment. A serious head or brain injury may require lifelong care and financial support. Accepting a settlement offer without the guidance of a skilled Boston child injury attorney can leave you and your child ill prepared for the road ahead. Your child deserves a legal team who is experienced in handling child brain injury cases in Massachusetts and one who can ensure that he or she will receive fair compensation for his or her brain injury.

So, before you sign any insurance claim forms, give a recorded statement to the insurance adjuster, or agree to a settlement offer, schedule your FREE case evaluation today by calling 800-930-8145. You can also learn more about how to best handle your child’s injury by requesting a FREE copy of our Massachusetts child injury book.

A September car accident left 16-year-old Chris DePietro in a Boston hospital bed in a coma for three weeks. It wasn’t until recently that he woke up and was released to go home and recover from his traumatic injuries.

DiPietro, of Atkinson, NH, is not able to speak yet and his body is weak from being in a coma, but he seems determined to get back to the condition he was before the accident occurred. He currently is undergoing rehabilitative therapy at a local hospital to regain what he has lost.

The September 10 crash happened in the early evening, just around 5:00pm, when DiPietro lost control of his car and collided with a tree not far from his home. Emergency personnel who responded to the scene had to pry DiPietro out of the car with a Jaws of Life-type device because the doors were so mangled they would not open. It was reported in the article that emergency responders could not believe DiPietro survived such a serious accident.

He was taken to an area hospital and then flown to a more appropriate Boston hospital, where he stayed until his release last week.

DiPietro sustained a significant brain injury from the collision, leaving him in a coma for those weeks. Once he awoke from the coma, he stayed in critical condition at the Boston hospital for some weeks following and underwent necessary surgeries for his injuries.

If your child has suffered a serious head or brain injury as a result of an accident or because of the negligence of another, please order your free copy of the Massachusetts child injury book.

Contact a Boston brain injury attorney at Kiley Law Group and we will advocate for fair compensation for your child’s injuries. We serve clients in the greater Boston area. To schedule your free case evaluation, don’t hesitate and call today at 1-800-930-8145.

Falls are the No. 1 cause of traumatic brain injury for the general population in the United States. In fact, 35% of all brain injuries are the result of falls. In children, the number is even more staggering. Approximately 50% of all traumatic brain injury cases in children ages 14 and younger are caused by falls, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

While short falls may carry only a low risk for mild brain injury, falls from long distances, such as from windows, playground equipment or other heights have a much higher potential to cause severe brain injury. It’s interesting to note that specific age groups are each susceptible to severe brain injury from different types of falls.

Take a look at some of the following age groups, and the types of falls in which they are most likely to sustain a severe brain injury:

• Infants – falls from stairs and furniture.
• Toddlers – falls from windows.
• Older children – falls from playground equipment.

In addition, it seems most falls for younger children occur in the home, while older children sustain most falls at home or at school. During warmer months, the risk for children in general to sustain injury from falls increases.

Childhood inherently carries risks – it’s a part of learning and growing up. In most cases, falls and spills only result in bruising or cuts, or an occasional concussion (a mild form of brain injury).

Even so, some children unfortunately sustain a severe brain injury caused by a fall. If someone else was charged with caring for your child at the time of their fall, and failed to provide proper supervision, you may be able to prove that their negligence caused your child’s severe brain injury.

When this is the case, you’ll want to talk with a Boston child brain injury attorney about your option for compensation on behalf of your child. Compensation is of vital importance, because a severe brain injury cannot be reversed or cured, and medical care is often extremely expensive. In addition, the responsible party should be held liable for the loss of quality of life on behalf of your child.

When You Need to Talk to a Boston Child Brain Injury Attorney

When your child has sustained a life-altering severe brain injury, you shouldn’t have to pay for ongoing medical care and treatment. A serious head or brain injury may require lifelong care and financial support. Accepting a settlement offer without the guidance of a skilled Boston child injury attorney can leave you and your child ill prepared for the road ahead. Your child deserves a legal team who is experienced in handling child brain injury cases in Massachusetts and one who can ensure that he or she will receive fair compensation for his or her brain injury.

So, before you sign any insurance claim forms, give a recorded statement to the insurance adjuster, or agree to a settlement offer, schedule your FREE case evaluation today by calling 800-930-8145. You can also learn more about how to best handle your child’s injury by requesting a FREE copy of our Massachusetts child injury book.

Even though all 3 levels of brain injury may be caused by the same things, the differences lie in the extent of brain damage and periods of unconsciousness that result. 

There are 3 levels of brain injury: mild, moderate and severe. While all of them can be caused by everyday activities such as car accidents, sports activities, bike riding and even skateboarding, the difference between the 3 levels of brain injury occur when the brain knocks against the inside of the skull, which can cause bleeding and swelling. 

The swelling and lack of oxygen to the brain directly impacts the extent of brain damage and is what separates each of the 3 levels of brain injury. 

The following are some of the differences among the 3 levels of brain injury: 

• Mild Brain Injury – this is often referred to as a concussion and a child may be unconscious for only a few seconds, or may only be momentarily confused; usually headaches and fatigue will ensue.
• Moderate Brain Injury – this can result in an unconscious state for a few minutes or hours, and confusion can last several weeks. Some physical, social and thinking abilities may be permanently affected.
• Severe Brain Injury – an unconscious state lasts for days, weeks or months. The child’s cognitive functioning will be completely altered, with vegetative states common.  

If your child has sustained a child brain injury that resulted from someone else’s negligence, whether it was from a careless motorist, inattentive caregiver or athletic coach, you’ll want to talk to a Boston child brain injury attorney about your options to file a child injury claim.

 How a Boston Child Brain Injury Attorney Can Help 

While mild brain injury may only result in headache and temporary confusion, a moderate or severe brain injury can result in permanent disability, or even death. If your child has suffered a serious head or brain injury as the result of a Massachusetts accident or because of the negligence of another, you need to order this FREE Massachusetts child injury book. And to learn more about your child’s right to fair compensation for his or her injuries, contact the Boston child brain injury attorneys at Kiley Law Group. 

Our firm will advocate tirelessly for your child to ensure that his or her future is secure. So, before you sign any insurance claim forms, give a recorded statement to the insurance adjuster, or agree to a settlement offer, schedule your FREE case evaluation today by calling 800-930-8145. We serve clients throughout the greater Boston area.

While a mild brain injury is considered the least severe of all child head injuries, it’s still a traumatic brain injury and should be treated as such. There is still the potential for a mild brain injury to progress to a more serious condition if not carefully monitored, so it’s important to be aware of the signs and symptoms of a mild brain injury, as well as your legal options if someone else’s actions led to your child’s condition. 

Causes of Mild Brain Injury in Children 

In most cases, a mild brain injury, commonly known as a concussion, is sustained in much the same way as any other head injury. 

This is mainly through: 

• falls;
• car accidents; and
• sports injuries.  

When a child falls off a bike or takes a hard hit during a youth hockey game, their brain may shift in their head. When the brain hits against the inside of the skull, the tissues can be impacted, which keeps the brain from operating properly, albeit for a limited time. 

What separates a mild brain injury from the other more severe forms of brain injury is that a child typically doesn’t lose consciousness, and if so, it’s only for an extremely limited time. In addition, most cases of mild brain injury do not cause permanent problems. 

Symptoms of Mild Brain Injury in Children 

If your child was recently hurt in a sports accident, fall or other mishap, look for some of the following symptoms: 

• headache;
• dizziness;
• mood changes;
• ringing in the ears;
• sleep problems;
• balance issues; and
• memory problems. 

Since many of the above symptoms are similar to what occurs after a moderate brain injury, you’ll want to seek medical attention to make sure a more serious condition hasn’t occurred. If a doctor does diagnose the condition as a mild brain injury, you’ll still need to closely monitor your child for a few weeks afterward, to make sure complications don’t occur, and that they don’t sustain a subsequent concussion. 

Children at Risk for Complications from a Mild Brain Injury 

In some cases, children may experience more drastic complications from a mild brain injury. 

If your child sustained a mild brain injury, you may need to be more concerned if your child: 

• is less than a year old;
• has a history of previous concussions;
• has other neurological problems;
• uses blood thinners; or
• is in a high contact sport (like football, hockey or soccer, where the risk for a repeat concussion is high). 

Know Your Rights; Consult a Massachusetts Child Brain Injury Attorney 

Even in the case of a mild brain injury, you must consider the medical bills involved, as well as the disruption the injury has caused you and your family. If someone else’s negligence caused your child’s brain injury, you may want to consult with a Massachusetts child brain injury attorney. 

Whether the accident was a result of an overly persistent football coach, careless driver or irresponsible caregiver, a Massachusetts child brain injury attorney can work with you to determine your eligibility for compensation. After all, you shouldn’t have to foot the bill for the harm someone else caused to your child. 

In addition, with the help of a Massachusetts child brain injury attorney, you can focus all your attention on your child and family while your attorney deals with the claims process. 

Contacting a Massachusetts Child Brain Injury Attorney 

Even a mild brain injury such as a concussion results in medical expenses and disruption for which a negligent party should be accountable. If your child has suffered a serious head or brain injury as the result of a Massachusetts accident or because of the negligence of another, you need to order this FREE Massachusetts child injury book. And to learn more about your child’s right to fair compensation for his or her injuries, contact the Massachusetts child brain injury attorneys at Kiley Law Group. 

Our firm will advocate tirelessly for your child to ensure that his or her future is secure. So, before you sign any insurance claim forms, give a recorded statement to the insurance adjuster, or agree to a settlement offer, schedule your FREE case evaluation today by calling 800-930-8145. We serve clients throughout the greater Boston area.

Kids are by nature active and full of energy. This is why it’s no surprise to see them at play, whether in an organized sport like soccer or a recreational activity such as skateboarding or rollerblading. 

The alarming part of this is that all sports and recreational activities carry with them some element of risk. Even though it may seem as if the chance for severe accidents and injury are rare, approximately 400,000 kids are treated for traumatic brain injuries each year. While many traumatic brain injuries take the form of a concussion, its mildest form, cases of moderate brain injury are among those numbers. 

Causes of Moderate Brain Injury in Children 

While having your kids wear helmets when participating in sports or playing in certain outdoor activities may help, there are actually many ways your child could sustain a moderate brain injury. 

Some common causes of moderate brain injury include: 

• team sports (football, hockey, soccer, etc.);
• recreational activities (rollerblading, skiing, bike riding);
• car accidents;
• falls; and
• child abuse (including shaken baby syndrome). 

A moderate brain injury occurs when a child’s head or body takes a serious blow, such as in a whiplash effect from a car accident, or a bad spill in tackle football. When the body or head is impacted, the brain can actually move inside the skull. This causes severe problems when blood vessels and tissues are damaged, which can cause the brain to swell and experience oxygen deprivation, which damages brain cells. The extent of damage to brain cells is what separates all forms of brain injury, be it a concussion, moderate brain injury or severe injury. 

Specific Symptoms of Moderate Brain Injury in Children 

While all forms of brain injury are sustained in much the same way, what sets a moderate brain injury apart from the others is the extent of time unconsciousness lasts, and the amount of time the child is confused. This is often a giveaway for the extent of long-term or permanent damage that may have been sustained. 

The symptoms unique to a moderate brain injury include: 

• unconsciousness that lasts from minutes to hours;
• confusion that lasts from days to weeks; and
• behavioral and cognitive problems that last months or a lifetime. 

The ability to recognize some of the physical warning signs of a moderate brain injury may significantly impact its long-term effects. Any parent whose child is experiencing headaches, sensitivity to noise, nausea and even numbness should seek immediate medical attention. For infant and toddlers, listlessness, a swollen scalp and loss of newly acquired skills can be a giveaway that serious injury has occurred. 

Residual Symptoms of Moderate Brain Injury in Children 

After a moderate brain injury, your child may experience lifelong disabilities that could set them back from their peers. This is because the effects of brain injury are permanent and cannot be reversed. 

Some common traits a child may exhibit even years after a moderate brain injury include: 

• concentration problems;
• shortened attention span;
• impaired or slowed speech;
• impaired social skills;
• memory problems; and
• inability to grasp abstract concepts. 

While a child with a moderate brain injury can typically return to a school and social setting, sometimes lifelong treatment and therapy are needed to help them find ways to learn independence and cope with life at the onset of adulthood. With adequate rehabilitation and support, a child with a moderate brain injury will likely be able to make up for these deficits. 

How a Boston Child Brain Injury Attorney Can Help  

Immediate treatment for a moderate brain injury, as well as ongoing rehabilitation and therapy can be extremely expensive. If your child has suffered from a moderate brain injury because of another’s negligence, you’ll want to contact a Boston child brain injury attorney to discuss how you can seek compensation to cover the mounting medical bills, among other losses. 

A Boston child brain injury attorney can listen to the details surrounding your child’s moderate brain injury, to determine if you’re eligible to file a child injury claim. If so, a Boston child brain injury attorney has the time and resources to build a strong case on your child’s behalf, so you can focus on your loved one. 

When to Contact a Boston Child Brain Injury Attorney 

Even a moderate brain injury can have lasting detrimental effects on your child’s social and cognitive development. If your child has suffered a serious head or brain injury as the result of a Massachusetts accident or because of the negligence of another, you need to order this FREE Massachusetts child injury book. And to learn more about your child’s right to fair compensation for his or her injuries, contact the Boston child brain injury attorneys at Kiley Law Group. 

Our firm will advocate tirelessly for your child to ensure that his or her future is secure. So, before you sign any insurance claim forms, give a recorded statement to the insurance adjuster, or agree to a settlement offer, schedule your FREE case evaluation today by calling 800-930-8145. We serve clients throughout the greater Boston area.